Kinky gets music fans dancing at the Long Beach Grand Prix

Ulises Lozano, left, jams on the accordion with lead singer Gilberto Cerezo, right, as the band Kinky performs Friday at the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach on Friday.
Thomas R. Cordova — Staff Photographer

The loud roaring buzz of race cars wasn’t the only sound filling the air at the 40th Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach, thanks to the accordion and dance-driven beats by the band Kinky.

The Grammy-nominated band took the stage at 7 p.m. Friday for a fast-paced 1 1/2hour show as part of the Tecate Light Fiesta Friday concert.

“We’re glad to be here in Long Beach,” Kinky lead singer Gil Cerezo told the approximately 2,000 people who had gathered in front of the Long Beach Convention Center fountain to hear the Mexican band. “Let’s start the party.”

The show was one of two concerts taking place during the Grand Prix this weekend. Saturday night headliner Paul Rodgers — founding member of such bands as Bad Company, Free and The Firm — was set to perform.

Friday night, however, was all about the fusion sounds of the five-member band made up of Cerezo, Carlos Cháirez on the guitar, bass player Cesar Pliego, drummer Omar Gongora and Ulises Lozano, who rocked the accordion and keyboards.

The sunset performance delivered the tight and energetic traditional Mexican-Norteño and electro-dance rock sound the band is known for.

“This is one of the best bands out there right now. They’re going to have this place going,” said Selma Reyes, a fan of the band who had access to the show as part of her race admission.

Fans like Reyes started lining up in front of the stage more than an hour before the show started to get a spot at the front.

“I’ve seen them at Coachella, and they got everyone into the music,” Reyes added.

Formed in Monterrey, Mexico, in 1998 the band recently released a new album called “Sueno de la Maquina,” (The Machine’s Dream), which was produced and mixed by John King, who has produced albums for The Rolling Stones, Beck and The Beastie Boys.

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At the Grand Prix concert, the band dove right into the new material, opening the show with “Despues Del After,” one of the songs from the album. As soon as the music began, a dance circle formed in the grassy area near the Convention Center fountain that faces Ocean Boulevard. Young music fans, as well as a few parents with their young kids on their shoulders, jumped into the circle and danced.

They then delivered one of their biggest hits, a song called “Mas y Mas” from the band’s self-titled album that was released in 2002, which got a big cheer from the crowd. The band continued to encourage the already grooving crowd to dance with their song “Sister Twisted.”

Other songs performed included “Control,” “Intoxicame,” and a cover of the Wall of Voodoo song “Mexican Radio,” which changed the dance circle into a more physical but still peaceful mosh pit.

After thanking the crowd for the night, the band left the stage but quickly came back for a three-song encore that ended with “A Donde Van Los Muertos.”

“That was pretty intense, and fun,” said a sweaty Andrew Leon as he came out of the mosh pit at the end of the night.

About the Author

Richard Guzman covers Arts and Entertainment for the Long Beach Press-Telegram, where he writes about art, theater, music and food. He is a graduate of CSU Northridge with a degree in journalism. Richard grew up in Los Angeles and has written about food, pop culture and art in the area. He has two young children and in his spare time enjoys riding his motorcycle and hiking. Reach the author at Richard.Guzman@presstelegram.com
or follow Richard on Twitter: @Richword.